February 24, 2026 — Northeastern United States A powerful February 2026 North American blizzard, known as Winter Storm Hernando, struck the Northeast on February 22-23, delivering up to 3 feet of snow, wind gusts of 98 mph in Wellfleet, Massachusetts, power outages affecting more than 600,000 customers, nearly 8,000 flight cancellations, and travel bans across New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and other states.
Governors in affected areas, including New York’s Kathy Hochul, Massachusetts’ Maura Healey, and New Jersey’s Mikie Sherrill, declared states of emergency and activated National Guard units to aid recovery efforts. The storm originated from explosive cyclogenesis off the southeastern U.S., rapidly intensifying to produce blizzard conditions from Maryland to Maine.
Snowfall shattered records, with 37.9 inches at Rhode Island’s T.F. Green International Airport, 32.8 inches in Providence, Rhode Island, 31.8 inches in Norton, Massachusetts, 29.5 inches in Babylon, New York, and 27.9 inches in Carlstadt, New Jersey. Additional reports included over 29 inches in Islip, New York, and up to 33.5 inches in Rhode Island, according to NBC News live updates.
Snow accumulation map shared on X documenting totals across states, including 33.5 inches in Rhode Island and 29.5 inches in New York. (Source)
Power outages peaked at over 600,000, with nearly 300,000 in Massachusetts and 135,000 in New Jersey; Orleans on Cape Cod experienced near-100% outages. Winds reached hurricane force on Cape Cod and Nantucket, up to 83 mph, downing trees and lines, per Associated Press coverage.
Transportation ground to a halt with about 8,000 flights canceled nationwide, over 2,500 in the New York area alone. New York City imposed a travel ban from Sunday evening to Monday noon—the first major one in over a decade—while New Jersey and Massachusetts counties enacted similar restrictions, leading to highway closures and suspended transit, as detailed in Reuters.
“Potentially the worst storm in 30 years—stay off the roads.”
— New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill
“This is a serious storm, and there are dangerous road conditions out there, especially on the South Coast.”
— Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, via NBC News
Two fatalities occurred in Maryland from a tree falling on a car, with hundreds of crashes reported. The blizzard marks the most severe in the region since 1996, breaking multiple two-day snowfall records, according to The New York Times live blog and Washington Post analyses. Schools closed across the region, and recovery efforts continue amid icy roads and lingering outages.
